Dopaminergic Mediation of Delayed Hypoxic Arousal From Quiet Sleep in Young Lambs Exposed to Nicotine In Utero ♦ 1950

Decreased ability to arouse in response to hypoxemia and maternal smoking are major risk factors for SIDS. Hypoxic arousal is thought to be mediated by stimulation of peripheral chemoreceptors. In young lambs, acute postnatal nicotine exposure impairs the ventilatory response to acute hypoxia and delays arousal in quiet sleep (QS) (Pediatr Res 39:386A, 1996). The aim of this study was to determine whether prenatal nicotine exposure alters postnatal hypoxic arousal and to ascertain whether this effect is mediated by dopamine.